Machine-operated wrench and control means therefor



2,678,576 MACHINE-OPERATED WRENCH AND CONTROL MEANS THEREFOR Filed April 28. 1949 May 18, 1954 K. R. THOMPSON 4 Sheefis-Sheet 1 IN V EN TOR. {917/} Z 7' 5001 5 2 May 18, 1954 K. R. THOMPSON 2,678,576

MACHINE-OPERATED WRENCH AND CONTROL MEANS THEREFOR Filed April 28. 1949 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 I I J/ 7! INVENTOR.

,22% 22 HIM/ Wei/M 959.

y 8, 1954 K. R. THOMPSON 2,678,576

MACHINE-OPERATED WRENCHAND CONTROL MEANS THEREFOR Filed April 28. 1949 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 ZJJ 742 L it IES? 1/ ;44 d- 2 l& :/2a0 L E- INVENTOR- R ia/rows Patented May 18, 1954 MACHINE-OPERATED WRENCH AND CONTROL MEANS THEREFOR Keith It. Thompson, Monroe, Mich, assignor to Monroe Auto Equipment Company, Monroe, Mich., a corporation of Michigan Application April 28, 1949, Serial No. 90,219

7 Claims.

"This invention relates to mass production apparatus and more particularly to movable automatic production tools.

It is the principal object of the invention to provide an automatic production tool which is movable with and actuated by moving workpieces, e. g., workpieces or allied parts carried by a conveyer.

In order to accomplish this and other objects, the invention contemplates the use of a carriage which is movable alongside the conveyer. This movement may be caused by the conveyor or by separate means but in either case it is controlled by suitable means which is actuated during successive periods by contact with successive workpieces or partsbeing moved. thereby on the con- 'veyer. The tool required to perform the desired operation on the workpiece is mounted on the carriage and is therefore movable beside and in operative relationship to a workpiece. The control means which regulates the actuation of the carriage also governs the tool so that in net eliect the invention achieves automatic synchronism between the tool and successive workpieces.

The tools illustrated herein are used to perform desired operations in the production of shock absorbers; however, it will be recognized that the invention is not limited in this respect but is equally well adapted to perform other operations upon other parts. In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevation with parts broken away and with the control circuit shown diagrammatically of one form of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the device shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the device shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a section taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is a section taken on line 5-5 of Fig. 2, Fig. 6 is a section taken on line 5-6 of Fig. 4,

Fig, 7 is a section taken on line l--1 of Fig. 6,

Fig. 8 is a front elevation with parts broken away and with the control circuit shown diagrammatically of a modified form of the invention, and 1 Fig. 9 is a section taken on line 99 of Fig. 8.

As shown in Figs. 1-3, the machine has a suitable fixed frame which includes legs I that support a table plate 3. An additional plate 5 may be bolted to the table 3 so that it overhangs the fixed frame and terminates adjacent parts A which are carried thereby on the conveyor B (Fig. 1). The part A has a nut C which is automatically tightened by apparatus to be described as it is carried by the conveyor B in a rightward dihead i5.

rection in Fig. 2. The part A is of course clamped to the conveyor 3 by means of a suitable fixture D The mechanism for tightening the nut C includes preferably a rotary air motor '3 that has a suitable socket 9 for operative engagement with the nut. Motors oi this type are procurable on the open market. Air may be fed to the motor I through the conduit l l which contains a suitable pressure regulator 53 and a solenoid-operated three-way valve it. The regulator it provides a control of the maximum pressure delivered to the motor l and thus regulates the torque with which the motor tightens the nut C.

In addition to its rotary motion, the socket 9, and therefore the motor I, must have vertical movement so as to engage and disengage it with the nut C and also horizontal translatory movement so that the nut-tightening process may be conducted while the part A is being moved by the conveyer B.

Vertical movement of the motor I is permitted by slidably attaching it to the head iii. For this purpose suitable brackets l7 secure the motor 1 to a built-up slide I9 that is reciprocable in Ways 2| in the head 15. As best indicated in Fig. 2, the ways 2! may be provided by a plurality of plates 23 that are bolted to the face of an air cylinder 25 which comprises a portion of the head !5.

Horizontal movement of the motor l is accomplished by horizontal movement of the entire For this purpose the head it is mounted on a carriage 21 that moves reciprocably on the plate 5 in a direction parallel to and in juxtaposition to the conveyor B. As shown best in Figs. 1 and 6, this carriage includes a top plate 29 and plates 3| affixed to the underside of the plate 29, and two pairs of rollers extend laterally from the plates 3| and ride upon spaced rail bars 35 that are secured to the suriaceof plate 5. In order to prevent undesirable trans verse movement, rollers 37 having vertical axes may be secured to the plates 35 and disposed to ride upon the inside vertical faces or". the rails The head i5 is attached to the carriage 2'1 by means of upright T bars 39 that are bolted to the sides thereof and secured by bolts M at their lower ends to the carriage top plate 29. It will thus be evident that head it and the motor I are capable of horizontal movement with the carriage 2? in directions defined by the rails 35.

Additional support for the head it is also pro vided. This includes an arm 43 that is pivoted at 45 to the casing of air cylinder 25. The arm 43 is pivotally connected at M to another arm 49 by a pin 33.

that is pivoted on the upright rod 5|. The rod 5i is suitably supported in a socket bracket 53 that is affixed to the table 3. By means or" the articulated connection provided by arms (i3 and 49, the rod 5i furnishes support to the head l5 without interfering with its movement on the carriage El. 7

The slide and thus the motor 1, is moved in its ways 26 by the air cylinder 25 which re ceives and exhausts air from its upper and lower ends by conduits 55 and hi, respectively. A block at is secured to the end of the cylinder piston rod 6! and is also affixed to the lower end of the Slide it whereby movement of the rod re- 1 and 5? to the cylinder 25 are controlled by a spring-biased, solenoid-operated, four-way valve 5'5. A pressur line 68 supplies air to the valve 6'! and may also be used to supply air to the regu lator 13 for the motor l.

Horizontal movement of the carriage 2'5, and thus the motor "5, is, in this embodiment, cmpowered by the conveyor B. For this purpose the fixture D has an upright pin E which rides beneath the plate 5 and engages a finger 'li '(Figs. ii-7). The finger ii is or" generally triangular or be1l-crank shape and is pivoted on the pin 73, a cap E5 and a cap screw 5'? serving to preserve this connection as recognized from Figs. 6 and '7. The pin i3 extends upwardly through an elongated slot in the overhang of plate 5 and threads into the plate 3! of the carriage 2'? and provides means whereby force applied by the pin L to the finger "ii may move the carriage. The other free end of finger it carries a roller {35 that is pivoted to the finger The roller 3! rides on a lever 85 that is pivoted at its up conveyer end by a pin 81 in an elongated recess that is formed in a side of a rail 85 that is secured by bolts 92 to the underside of the plate 5. A spring 93 that is disposed n a suitable aperture in the rail urges the lever 85 outwardly from the rail and against the roller 8!. The lever 35 and rail 89 are rounded at their down conveyor ends as shown at 95. The lever 85 and rail 89 serve two purposes, First, the fixed rail defines the path of travel of the roller 8i and thus prevents pivoting of the finger ii away from pin E. Force from this pin therefore moves the carriage 21. However, when the roller 8! reaches curved end 95 of the rail and lever, it loses its lateral support and the finger H is permitted to pivot on pin 13 away from the pin E so that the fixture D is disconnected from the carriage 2?. The second purpose served. by the lever 85 and rail 89 is the actuation of a limit switch LS! which is secured to the underside of plate 5. This switch has its stem 8? extending through a suitable aperture in the rail so that it is contacted by the lever 85 and closed whenever the roller 8| is in a position to overcome the force of spring 93. The limit switch LSi is used to partially control the cylinder as will be described hereinafter.

From the foregoing it is evident that the pin E acting through finger ll drives the carriage 2? in the down conveyor direction until the roller 8! rides around curved rail end 95. When this occurs it is necessary to return the carriage to its initial up conveyer position. This is conveniently accomplished in the present embodiment by a tension spring 99 that yieldably biases the carriage to a predetermined position as determined by an adjustable stop IOI that is affixed to a plate Hi3 secured to the underside of plate 5. The spring 99, which is connected by a pin we to the carriage and by a bracket I97 to the plate N13, is energized by down conveyer movement of the carriage 2? and, upon release of the finger H and pin E, pulls the carriage back against the stop 151. This movement is controlled and cushioned by a one-way orifice arrangement 1539. This includes an air cylinder I ii that is secured in a suitable manner to plate 5 having a piston therein with its rod H2 pivoted to the carriage at l 53. The distal outlet H5 of the cylinder is open to freely admit and exhaust air therefrom, but the proximal outlet has a variable orifice H1 connected thereto. Thus while the carriage is free to move toward the outlet H5 of the cylinder Ill, when it is forced to return by the spring 95 the orifice H1 controls the rate of efiiux of air from the cylinder ii and thus the rate of movement of the carriage 21.

During return of the carriage it is desirable, for reasons to become apparent hereinafter, that lever remain in expanded condition under the influence of spring -93 so that the limitswitch LS2 remains open. This is possible, of course, because there is no force on finger Ti tending to pivot the roller against the lever 85. In order to maintain contact of roller and lever, a spring wire H9 may be connected to the cap 15 and pin 83 arranged to hold the roller iii against the lever 85 with a force that is insufficient to overcome spring 93. Thus the limit switch LS! will remain open until a pin E engages finger ll, which is held in the pins path by spring 93, to pivot it about pivot 13 so that the roller 85 is forced against the lever 85 to close the switch.

Two additional switches are also actuated by down conveyor movement of the carriage 21. These are switches LS2 and LS3, which are mounted on plate 5 as shown in Fig. 4. LS2 controls the solenoid valve l4 and thus the air motor i, while LS3, in conjunction with LSI, controls the pressure cylinder 25. The switches LS2 and LS3 are contacted by the edge of a cam plate 1'2! that is affixed to the top plate 29 of the carriage 2'5 and moves therewith. The cam plate 12! has two lateral switch contacting surfaces 123-and l25 which actuate the switches LS2 and LS3 respectively upon down conveyor movement of, the carriage 21'. Surface !23 is arranged to contact switch LS2 slightly before surface I25 contacts switch LS3.

Switch LS2 is normally closed so that the solenoid valve i4 is energized to permit flow of air through line I l to rotate the motor 1., When contacted by the surface [23, it is opened to stop rotation of the motor. As will become evident hereinafter, this occurs before the motor i is lifted by the cylinder 25.

Switch LSi which is operated by roller 8| is This valve is yieldably biased to l pr WIN connect the line 69 to the line 51 that leads to the bottom of the cylinder 25. Thus, when switch LS3 is opened by cam surface I25, the slide I9 and motor I are lifted.

When the carriage 21 is pressed against the stop I by spring 99, the switch LS2 is closed so that the motor I is rotating the socket 2. The switch LS! is open so that the spring-biased solenoid valve 6'! connects the lower side of the cylinder 25 to pressure and the upper side to exhaust and thereby holds the slide I9 and motor I in elevated position. Furthermore, the spring 03 presses the lever 05 outwardly and the roller 81 of finger H rides thereon so that its free end is pivoted about pin I3 into the path of approaching pins E on the conveyer B.

When a pin strikes the finger II it exercises a torque that tends to pivot the finger about pin 73 so that the finger will be disconnected there from. This is prevented, however, by contact of the roller ill with the lever 05 and rail 89. By virtue of the torque exercised by pin E on the finger 1!, this contact overcomes resistance of spring 93 so that the finger 85 is pressed by roller 8! against the stem 01 of the switch LSI to close the switch. Closing of switch LSI energizes the solenoid of valve 61 and the upper end of cylinder 25 is connected to pressure line 69 so that the motor I and socket 9 are lowered onto the nut of the workpiece A. Inasmuch as the socket 9 is rotating at this time, the nut will beautomatt cally fitted into the socket.

The pin E carries the carriage along with the conveyer while the socket 9 is tightening the nut with no more than a maximum torque determined by regulator l3. During this movement the pin I3 travels in slot I5 of the plate 5 while the roller BI rides on lever 85 and rail 80. The cam surfaces I23 and I25 are also moving toward their switches LS2 and LS3. After predetermined movement of the carriage, the cam surface 523 contacts switch LS2 and de-energizes the valve i4 so that pressureto the motor I is cut off and tightening of the nut, if it has not already stopped due to maximum torque limitations, is stopped. The cam surface I25 then contacts switch LS3 to de-energize the solenoid of valve 6'! and raise the slide liland motor I. Since this takes place while the motor I is de-energized,

there can be no burring or smearing of the edges of the nut. At about this time the roller 85 reaches the rounded surface 95 of the lever 85 and rail 89. The torque applied by pin E therefore pivots the finger about pin IS so that the finger II is disconnected from the pin E and the conveyer B.

When the finger II is disconnected from pin E, the spring 99 applies a restoring force to the carriage 2"! to pull it back against stop it! at a rate regulated by the opening of valve Ill. This of course pulls the cam surface I 25 away from switch LS3 so that it closes again. Energization of valve 6? is prevented, however, because spring 93 is sufiicient to press the lever 35 and roller BI outwardly so that the switch LS! assumes its normally open position. Thus the slide I9 remains in elevated position. When the cam surface I23 is retracted from switch LS2, the latter closes to energize valve I4 and therefore renew rotation of the motor 1. It will be recognized, therefore, that when the carriage 21 reaches a position of rest against stop i0! that it is ready to begin another cycle.

In the modified form of Figs. 8 and 9 the carriage 200 is movable on the table or fixed surface 204 by the pressure cylinder 202 which may be suitably afiixed to the side of the table as shown. Fixed rails 206 guide the carriage so that its movement is parallel to and in juxtaposition to the conveyer J which carries the workpieces K, the latter comprising, in this case, tubes which are to be pressed or forced into an associated part (not shown). lhis operation on the tubes K is performed by a ram 208 which forms the lower end of the upwardly biased piston and rod assembly 2". that comprises a part of the pressure cylinder M2. The pressure cylinder 2 i2 is slidably mounted for vertical ad- 'justment by handle 2 I0 in suitable ways 2 l0 that form a part of the frame structure 2 I8, the latter being fixed to the carriage 202 for movement therewith. It will be appreciated that the adjustment provided by handle 2% is merely to adapt the ram mechanism to the workpiece K and that during actual operation it is only the piston rod assembly 250 and the ram 208 which move relatively to the carriage 2'].

As mentioned, the ram 208 is biased upwardly, this being accomplished by a spring 220 within the cylinder 2! 2. Downward movement of the ram is caused by the admission of air to the top of the piston assembly 2i0 through conduit 222. This conduit is connected to the pressure line 224 through a solenoid four-way valve 223 which, however, is spring-biased to connect the line 222 to the exhaust 226. The pressure cylinder 202 for moving the carriage 20c is also controlled by the valve 228. The left or down conveyer end of the cylinder 202 is connected by line 230 to the conduit 222 so that when the carriage is moved with the conveyer J the ram 203 will be moved downwardly to contact a workpiece K. The right end of cylinder 202 is connected to the other end of the four-way valve 222 through conduit 232.

The solenoid valve 228 is electrically connected to the buses B20 by leads C20, and its energization is under the control of the normally open limit switch LS20. The switch LS20 is mounted on a fixed table or surface 234 that is: alongside the conveyer J and has an actuator finger that is spring biased into the path of workpieces K passing thereby.

The operation of the embodiment of Figs. 8 and 9 is more or less self-evident. Since the valve 228 is biased to connect the lines 222 and 230 to exhaust 225, the ram 208 will be elevated and the carriage 200 will be in its extreme down conveyer position (i. e., to the left) so long as the finger 236 of switch L820 is not contacted by a workpiece K. However, when this finger is moved by an oncoming workpiecathe switch L820 is closed to energize the valve 228 and connect lines 222 and 230 to pressure line 224 and line 232 to exhaust 226. This enables the pressure to force the ram 208 downwardly and contact of the ram with the workpiece is maintained since the cylinder 202 is actuated to move the carriage 200 in the direction of conveyer movement, it being understood that the rate of this movement is regulated by suitable orifice means so that it corresponds to that of the conveyer J. When the workpiece passes out of contact with the switch arm 236, the switch LS20 is opened with the result that the valve 228 is de-energized and the ram 208 is raised and the carriage is moved back to its extreme leftward position.

It will be recognized from the two embodiments that the invention is capable of modification, hence it is not intended to limit it to the precise details shown.

What is claimed is:

1. In a productionmachine for tightening nuts or the like on workpieces carried by a moving conveyor, the combination of a frame, a carriage on the frame movable alongside the conveyor, a finger pivoted on the carriage and having portion capable of projecting into the path of an object carried on the conveyor, a fixed rail on the frame having a movable side yieldably biased toward and engaging said finger to hold said projecting portion in said path, said rail termihating on the down-conveyor side at a position corresponding to the desired end of the carriage stroke, the pivotal axis of said finger being 1ocated between said projecting portion and said rail whereby forces from the conveyor on the finger pivot it and the movable side against said rail and upon passage of the finger beyond the end of the rail it is pivoted out of said path, a switch connected to said movable side and operated by its movement, a. nut runner mounted on the carriage and movable toward and away from the conveyor, means for moving said nut runner toward and away from the conveyor, forward movement by said last means being controlled by said switch, another switch for controlling aft movement of said last means, a first cam mounted on the carriage and operatively connected to said last switch at a predetermined portion in the stroke of the carriage, means for rotating the nut runner, a switch for controlling said rotating means, said last switch being nor mally closed so that said rotating means is normally operative, and a second c-a-m mounted on the carriage and operatively connected with said last switch before the first cam is connected to its switch whereby said rotating means is made inactive before the nut runner is moved aft.

. 2. In a production machine for operating upon workpieces carried by a moving conveyor and having a. frame, the combination of a carriage movable relative to the frame alongside the conveyor between initial and final positions, means whereby the conveyor moves the carriage comprising a finger mounted on the carriage and movable therewith between said initial and final positions, said finger being movable relativ to said carriage between an operative position in which it adapted to be engaged and driven by said conveyor and an inoperative position in which it is not engaged by said conveyor, a guide member fixed on said frame and engaging said finger when said conveyor is betweensaid initial and final positions and holding said finger in its operative position, guide member terminating so that it does not hold said finger in its operative position beyond the final position of said carriage whereby said finger is movable to said inoperative position, a tool carried by the carriage a? l mounted thereon for movement relative the eto toward and away from the conveyor and also operatively movable to work on said workpiece, means for operatively moving said tool, means for moving the tool toward the conveyor, means for moving the tool away from the 8 conveyor, said guide member including a yieldable portion compressed by engagement with said finger, and means actuated by compression of said yieldable portion for controlling operation of one of said tool moving means.

3. The invention set forth in claim 2 wherein said yieldable portion has a spring means pressing it against the finger, and spring means urging the finger against the member portion, the spring means pressing the yieldable portion exerting greater force than the spring means urging the finger whereby the yieldable portion may be expanded when the fing r it is not engaged by the conveyor. I

4. The invention set forth in claim 2 wherein said last-mentioned means controls operation of the means for moving the tool toward the conveyor and upon expansion of-said yieldable portion acts to prevent the tool from moving toward the conveyor, a switch controlling operation of the means for operatively moving the tool, and a cam carried by the carriage and engageable with the switch before the carriage reaches said final position and operating the switch to discontinue operative movement of the tool.

5. 'The invention set forth in claim 4 wherein said switch is normally closed and is opened by said cam and said tool is operatively moving continuously except when the switch is engaged by said cam.

6. The invention set forth in claim 2 including means for controlling operation of another of said tool moving means and comprising a switch biased to non-operating position and a, cam on said carriage operating said switch when said carriage is adjacent said final position.

7. The invention set forth in claim 2 wherein said last-mentioned means includes a first switch that controls operation of the means for moving the tool toward the conveyor, means for controlling operation of the means for moving the tool away from the conveyor comprising a second switch and a first cam carried by the carriage and operating the second switch, and means for controlling operation of the means for operatively moving the tool comprising a third switch and a second cam carried by the carriage and operating the third switch.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 582,195 Gibbs May 11, 1897 723,995 Ellis Mar. 31, 1903 r 938,522 Swain Nov. 2, 1909 1,754,978 Buss Apr. 15, 1930' 1,859,319 Sussman May 24, 1932 1,960,719 ,Stibbs May 29, 1934 1,985,864 Kronquest Dec. 25, 1934 2,034,740 Brandt Mar. 24, 1936 2,163,930 Beiderman June 27, 1939 2,253,367 Di Prima Aug. 19, 1941 2,336,573 Seeley Dec. 14, 1943 

